Convertible furniture.



I. R. GILDA.

CONVERTIBLE FURNITURE. APPLICATION FILED NOV. 20, 1915.

I Patented Mar. 26, 1918.

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7mm an J. R.- GILDA. cowvsamu runmnuns. APPLICATION FILED NOV- 20, ISIS. 1,,Q60fi67. Patented Mar. 26, 1918.

3 SHEETS-SHEET 3- JOHN RUDOLPH GILDA, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR T0 PULLMAN' COUCH COM- PANY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS, A CORPORATION OF ILLINOIS.

GONVERTIBLE FURNITURE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Mar. as. r re.

Application filed November 20, 1915. Serial No. 62,483.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that 1, JOHN RUDOLPH GILDA, a citizen of the United States of America, and a resident of Chicago, county of Cook, and State of Illinois, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Convertible Furniture, of which the following is a specification.

The main objects of this invention are to providean improved form of convertible device which may be made in the form of household furniture adapted to serve in one condition as a bed, and in another condition for a difierent purpose, more especially as a box sofa or divan; to provide in such a device a foldable sectional bed bottom and improved mounting and control means operatably connected to an upturning seat member and adapted for swinging the bed bottom up from its retracted or storage position to its bed position by upturning the seat and vice verse; to provide an improved combination of link and leverage means for automatic cooperation of the seat and bed bottom members in converting the device from one form to the other; to provide means for swinging the seat member forward sufficiently as it is raised, so as to clear the wall adjacent to which the device may at times be disposed; and to provide an improved arrangement of power storing means to facilitate manual operation of the device.

An illustrative embodiment of this invention is shown in the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a top View of the device in its bed form. v i

Fig. 2 is a side View of the device in its bed form.

Fig. 3 is a side view of the device in its normal condition or seat form, the near end wall of the lower part being removed.

Fig. 4 is a side view of the device with the seat and bed bottom members in an intermediate position, the near end wall of the lower part being removed.

Fig. 5 is a section taken on the line A-A of Fig. 2.

Inthe construction shown in the drawings, the device comprises a boxlike inclosure member made in two parts normally dis-' posed one upon the other, the lower part 1 serving as a support and housing member,

and the upper part 2 serving as a frame for the seat member. The device also includes a foldable bed bottom 3 carried by said lower part, and operating mechanism for said seat and bed bottom.

The box frame proper or support 1 is rectangular and oblong in shape and of suitable depth to house the folded bed bottom 3 and bedding at carried thereby in made-up form and also the support and control mechanism hereinafter described, and is of a height suitable to maintain the seat in a convenient position for the comfort of the user when the device is folded.

The seat as a whole comprises said frame member 2, in combination with a deeply yielding upholstered part or seat proper 5 having large springs 6 suitably inclosed or covered so as to provide a deeply yielding resilient seat. A handle 2.1 on the lower middle part of the front of the frame 2 facilitates operation.

The bed bottom proper is constructed. in a manner well known in the art, and cornprises a plurality of foldably related sections, three being shown in the present instance, two of which are broad main sec-- tions 7 and 8, and the third being a short connecting section 9. adapted to space the main sections apart sufficiently to accommodate the bedding whcn folded. The bed bot tom is made in the form of a jointed border frame. in combination with a continuous flexible mattress or body member 10 secured to the peripheral frame by helical springs 11. Bedding fasteners 12 are provided on the outer section 8. A downwardly bowed spacing bar 13 is connected to the rails of the middle section 9, preferably in pivotal relation, as at :15, for holding the frame bars in spaced relation, the length of the bed being parallel with the length of the box frame 1.

The supporting and operating mechanism at each end of the device comprises a pair of links 16 and 17 disposed one in front of the other respectively and turnably connected at their forward or lower ends to the box frame or support 1, as at pivots 19 and 20 on the mounting plates 21 and 9.2 fixed on the ends of said box frame forward from the back, and at their rear or upper ends to the seat frame, the latter member being provided at or near its rear lower corner with a lug or bracket 2% normally projecting downward somewhat and adapted for pivotal connection of said links thereto, at 26 and 27 as shown in Fig. 1. The forward link 16 is somewhat longer than link 17 and the spacing of the frame pivots 19 and 20 is somewhat greater than that of the seat pivots 26 and 27, so that upward swinging of said seat on its links causes it to swing back to an upright position as it is raised. The upper pivot 26, referring to Fig. 2, is relativel close to the frame 2, whereas the lower pivot 27 is spaced away from said frame in such manner that when the seat swings to its upright position the forward link 16 adjacent to its upper end swings against the upper end of link 17, which acts in effect as a limiting stop or shoulder on the bracket 24, and so arrests the unfolding movement of the mechanism. Said links 16 and 17 are of sufiicient length to throw the seat well above the frame 1 in unfolding. Because of the peculiar relative position of the pivots 19, 20, 26 and 27 and the suitable lengths of said links 16 and 17, the seat is so swung in opening and closing as to clear the wall 25 back against which the device may be normally placed if desired, said wall being indicated by a dotted linein Figs. 2, 3 and 1.

Said mechanism also includes another pair of links 28 and 29 for the bed bottom, the forward or lower ends being turnably connected to said support 1 as at 31 and 32 on the mounting plates 33 and 34 on the forward and medial part of support 1, and their rear or upper ends being turnably connected to the frameof the bed bottom, connection being made to the inner section 7 as at 36 and 37. Said links 28 and 29 are connected at intermediatepoints, for a purpose which will be explained, by means of a link 40 turnably secured at its ends as at 42 and 43, said links being formed or provided with shoulders or brackets fi l and 45 medially disposed and projecting upwardly and forwardly when the device is folded and unfolded respectively for supporting said link 40. Said links 28 and 29 are of equal length between their end pivots and are disposed in parallel relation atthe same elevation whereby the bed section 7 is held horizontally in all of its positions.

In order to effect cooperation of movement of said seat and bed supporting means, so that the raising and lowering of the folded bed bottom shall be brought about automatically by the swing of the seat upward and downward respectively, an additional link 50 is turnably connected at its ends to said link 10 as at the medial point 51, and to the seat member. or preferably the bracket 24:, as at 52. When the device is folded, as in Fig. 3, the pivots 4.2 and 43 and link 40 carried thereby are disposed high enough with respect to the pivots 31, and 52 so that the forward thrust of link 50, due to raising the seat, will swing the links 28'and 29 upward and forward and so raise the bed bottom.

In order to facilitate operation of the device, particularly in upturning the seat and swinging the bed bottom forward, a lifting spring 55 is provided, one end of which is attached to the rear part of the box frame or support as at 57, and the other or forward end of which is connected as at 58 to a downwardly projecting arm 59 substan- The forward or outer section 8 is provided with foldable legs 62, one oneach side, and automatic means for projecting and retracting the same as the bed bottom folds and unfolds respectively. Each leg is turnably connected to the corresponding end rail adjacent to the forward edge of 'the section as at 63, adjacent to the upper end of the leg. A controlling link 65 is turnably connected at one end to the upper extremity of the leg, as at 67 and at its other end to the medial section, preferably at the point of connection 15 of the spacing bar as shown in, Fig. 2.

o The 'operation in converting this article bf furniture from a seating device to its bed form is as follows: The operator grasps the front part of the seat frame, as bythe handle 2.1, and lifting thereon, swings the seat upward to its vertical position over the back part of the frame 1 as shown in Fig. 2, therearrangementof bar 16 with respect to the seat end of link 17. v The links 28 and 29 being upright, the bed bottom is in a stable position, and gravity acting on the seat, now disposed back of the pivot axis 27 definitely and effectually prevents accidental reverse movement or folding of the device. As a second and final step the operator then grasps the front rail of the forward section 8, preferably at its middle point, and swings said section forward and downwardto its bed position, thereby automatically unfolding the legs 62.

For restoring the device to its seating po sition the operation is reversed, the operator first folding the forward section over on the inner section and then pulling forward and downward on. the seat handle 2.1,-

it will be understood that numerous details of the construction shown may be altered or omitted without departing from the spirit of this invention as defined by the following claims.

I claim 1. A convertible seating device, comprising a hollow base member, a seat member, on each end, of said device a pair of links disposed one in front of the other with corresponding ends turnably connected to the base and seat members respectively, said members and links being arranged so as to swingsaid seat member upward and backward to an upright position directly over said base member, a foldable sectional bed bottom adapted to be normally housed within said base member, on each end of said device a pair of supporting links disposed one in front of the other and each being turnably connected to said base member and said bed bottom, and means connecting said -bed bottom supporting links and said seat member whereby upturning of the seat causes a corresponding swinging of the bed bottom upward from within said base memberto its bed position.

2. A couch structure having a hollow frame member and a seat member adapted to swing upwardly and backwardly on edge, a pair of links disposed one in front of the other with corresponding ends turnably connected to the frame and seat members respectively, the connection of the front link to the seat member normally being somewhat above and in front of the corresponding connection of the rear link so that when the seat member is upturned, its backward swing is limited by the upward end of the rear link abutting against the forward link at a medial point ad acent to its upper end, in combination with a bed bottom member also mounted swingably on said frame and housed normally therein, and means operatively connecting said bed bottom member and seat whereby upturning of said seat member automatically raises said bed bottom member from its retracted or storage position in said frame to its proper bed position.

3. A convertible seat and bed device having a two part housing, comprising a base or supporting member, an upturning cover or top member adapted to serve as a seat and having operative connecting means whereby the top member is turnably connected to the base member and is swingable backward to an upright position over said base member, and a bed bottom carried swingingly by said base member, and operatively connected to said top member for automatic raising and lowering of the bed m mber, said connecting means comprising a pair-of links disposed one in front of the other with corresponding ends turnably connected to the base and top members respectively, the connection of the front link to the top member normally being somewhat above and in front of the corresponding connection of the rear link so that when, the top member is upturned its backward swing is limited by the upper end of the rear link impinging and bearing against the forward lin; at a medial point adjacent to its upper en Signed at Chicago this 18th day of Now,

JOHN RUDOLPH GILDA. Witnesses:

F. E. CHARLTON, CHARLES C. DAvis.

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